The Smoke in Your Eyes
by Morwinyon
Summary: Luke and Mara are finally tying the knot, but an almostforgotten shadow of the past appears to shatter their happiness.
1. Chapter One

"I can't believe I'm wearing this," Mara Jade growled.  
  
"You're the one who picked it out," Leia reminded her, rummaging around in her drawers. "I think I have just the thing to go with it, too."  
  
"No! No more frivolly, froopy pieces of-"  
  
"You know, Mara, it is traditional to dress up on one's wedding day," Leia interjected mildly.  
  
"I am not dressed up," the red-head stated flatly. "I have been made to look like someone's giant birthday cake gone wrong."  
  
Leia laughed. "Mara, you picked the simplest wedding dress on Coruscant. Hardly any lace, beads or bangles. You don't look anything but lovely." She held up a necklace of rubies and diamonds, glanced at Mara, then shook her head and replaced it in the drawer.  
  
"There is too lace!" Mara cried, holding the bottom of her Joorvanian silk skirt up for examination. She might have chosen the simplest dress on Coruscant, but it most certainly wasn't the cheapest. "Lace! See? Lace!"  
  
"Mara, there's barely a fourth of an inch of lace there!"  
  
"An anythingth of an inch is too much," she muttered. She caught sight of the pile of clothing she had changed out of. Her lightsaber sat on top in easy reach and she eyed it consideringly.  
  
"No, Mara," Leia said, without turning around.  
  
Mara sighed. "It's going to be a bitch having a sister-in-law who knows what I'm thinking, you know that?"  
  
Leia laughed. "All too well. Luke has complained of the same thing." She turned around. "Here it is!" she announced happily. "I knew it was in there somewhere." She held up a beautiful necklace of diamond, sapphire and crystal. In the center sparkled a single fantastic Corusca gem. She grinned at Mara's shocked face. "It was my mother's," she explained.  
  
"I.I can't wear that, Leia!" Mara gasped.  
  
"Nonsense," she said, bending down and fastening the clasp around her friend's neck. "I wore it at my wedding, and I would like it very much if my brother's bride wore it at hers." She stood back and admired her handiwork. "You look beautiful."  
  
Mara cast dawn her eyes and blushed, an expression that looked odd on her usually fierce and guarded face, but not entirely out of place. Leia smiled. Mara had become more like a young girl in the last few months than she suspected she had ever been in her entire life. "And yes, Luke will think so, too," she assured her, answering her unspoken question.  
  
"Oh, stop reading my mind!" Mara snapped, but she looked relieved.  
  
Leia ignored her outburst. "See? Now you have everything the rhyme says. Your wedding dress is new, and the necklace covers the other three: it's borrowed, blue and old." Leia looked pleased with herself.  
  
"That's just a silly old wives' tale. It doesn't mean a thing."  
  
Leia gave her a look. "So is the Force, according to some people, but we both know the truth of that." She studied Mara with a critical eye. "Aha! I know what I forgot. Your hair!"  
  
"What??" Mara put her hands protectively over her head. "There's nothing wrong with my hair! It's braided nicely!"  
  
"Oh, we need something a bit fancier than that, I think," Leia teased. She produced a pair of diamond combs from her drawer. "Now stay still."  
  
Mara grumbled, but obediently sat without moving as Leia piled her long red- gold hair atop her head. They were silent for a few moments, as Leia carefully placed the combs to keep Mara's hair in place. "Leia?" Mara spoke up suddenly.  
  
"Mmm?" Leia asked, her mouth full of hairpins.  
  
"I'm sorry.I'm sorry for being such a pain in the ass these last few days. I'm just so nervous."  
  
Leia laughed. "Oh, Mara, I haven't minded a bit. I was much worse before my wedding day. I thought I was going to kill Han before it was over. He's worse than you about dressing up, and I had a horrible time trying to make him wear something nice."  
  
Mara grinned, picturing Solo being forced bodily into a tuxedo. "Did you succeed?"  
  
Leia snorted. "No, but I had Luke and Wedge threaten to impound the Falcon if he didn't."  
  
Mara laughed outright at this. She sat quietly then as Leia finished her hair. "Leia.thanks," she finally said. She looked up at her. "I think you're going to be a wonderful sister-in-law." She put her hand to her belly and smiled distantly. "And an even better aunt."  
  
* * *  
  
"Luke, you gotta stop pacing. You're making me nervous."  
  
Luke sighed and sat down on his bed with a thump. "Sorry."  
  
"It's fine, kid. Just calm down. You're jumpier than a whomp rat in a rancor pit." Han grinned from his lounging position on one of Luke's chairs. "Kid, you've faced I don't know how many dark side super lords and evil creatures, and you can't hardly face your own wedding day? Now that's what I call irony."  
  
"At least I didn't have to have my ship impounded in order to put on something nice!" Luke shot back.  
  
"Hey, no need to bring up bitter memories. And as I recall, you only threatened to have her impounded. You couldn't lay a finger on her even if you tried!"  
  
It was Luke's turn to grin. "Yeah, but the threat worked, didn't it? You got into that tuxedo pretty damn fast."  
  
Han made a face. "Don't remind me." He eyed his old friend with some measure of jealousy. "How come you don't have to wear one? It ain't fair that you can get away wearing you Jedi uniform just 'cause you're a Jedi Master."  
  
"Well, it's nicer than what you wanted to wear to yours!"  
  
"Now, there was nothing wrong with that set of clothes. They were just a little old, that's all."  
  
Luke snorted. "Han, you had those since the days of the Rebellion."  
  
"So? They were broken in and comfortable. Just the way I like them."  
  
"They were mangy, ugly and disgusting," Luke corrected. "Leia was more than justified in throwing them into the recycler."  
  
Han sat bolt upright. "She did WHAT???? When?? Those were some of my favorite clothes--!"  
  
There was a discreet knock at the door. "Luke?" a calm female voice called.  
  
"Yes, Winter?" Luke felt his mouth go dry.  
  
"It's time."  
  
"O-okay. Thanks, Winter," Luke answered. "Calm down, kid," Han soothed, slapping him on the shoulder. "You'll be fine. You love the girl more than anything in the universe and she loves you. That's all that matters. The rest of the bull is for the public. Don't worry," he assured him, leading his unresisting friend out of the room and down the hall.  
  
"I knew we should have eloped." Luke muttered.  
  
* * *  
  
Coruscant's Imperial Chapel was full, and that was saying something. The place was cavernous, and jam-packed with spectators from almost every corner of the galaxy, all waiting to see the famed Jedi Master Luke Skywalker marry some ex-Imperial criminal. The story was an incredible scandal, and Luke and Mara had followed it in the tabloids with an amusement that was half horror at the blatant lies.  
  
"Mara Jade Gives Birth to Two-Headed Ithorian: Skywalker Suspects Her to Be Unfaithful," Han had read aloud the night before. "How drunk do you suppose these editors have to get before they can come up with crap like this?" he wondered.  
  
Now, every tabloid editor in the galaxy was present, Luke thought miserably, and they were all going to be wracking their brains for a new eye-catching and entirely untrue headline for tomorrow's issue. He stared out at the mass of people, all of whom were staring back at him. This was ridiculous. Why hadn't he followed Han's advice and eloped? Leia would have been furious, but she would have gotten over it, and then he wouldn't have to be subjugated to this.  
  
::Nervous, farmboy?:: a wry voice asked in his mind. He looked up and immediately forgot everything else in the room, in the building, in the entire galaxy.  
  
Mara stood at the end of the aisle, her long silk gown billowing out around her like a delicate cloud. The bodice was simply cut, accenting her dancer's figure, and the sleeves feel gracefully away from her shoulders to reveal her shoulders. A stunning necklace that he recognized as Leia's sparkled at her throat, and her hair was piled upon her head in glorious red-gold waves. A delicate veil of nearly transparent silver mist-gauze covered her face and hair and trailed down behind her like a trail of dewdrops. Her brilliant green eyes searched for his and asked a silent anxious question.  
  
::You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen,:: he replied, stunned.  
  
Her face broke out into a radiant smile as she started down the aisle towards him. ::You don't look so bad yourself, Skywalker.::  
  
She finally reached him and he held out his hands and took hers. They were hot and sweaty. ::You're just as nervous as I am,:: he accused.  
  
::I never said I wasn't,:: she teased.  
  
The service began, but Luke was never quite sure when. He was too lost in Mara. He repeated the "I do"s and exchanged the rings and some point, but he wasn't quite sure when. The entire thing passed in a happy blur. He had no idea what he had been nervous about. Han was right. He loved Mara, and that was all that mattered.  
  
Mara held Luke's hands and let her mind merge easily with his. It was such a natural feeling, to let herself go and become one with his mind, letting him embrace her in a way that was both more intimate and more fulfilling than physical contact. She loved him so much, it was almost painful, but painful in the way that stretching your muscles is painful: it's good for you, too.  
  
Leia watched them, and felt how close they were inside their heads, and she smiled and snuggled closer to Han. Part of her was jealous that they were communing in a way that was impossible for her and her husband, but she knew that had Han been anything other than what he was, she would never have loved him. He looked down at his wife. "What?" he whispered.  
  
"Nothing," she responded, laying her head on his shoulder. "It's just so wonderful to see Luke happy."  
  
Han grinned his lopsided grin and put an arm around her. "You can say that again. The kid's too grim for his own good. Mara'll be good for him."  
  
The minister looked at the couple before him and solemnly closed his book. He had married over a thousand couples in his time, but never had he seen one that was so very much.in tune.with one another. He smiled. It warmed the heart to see them. He raised his hands to speak the benediction. "As an ordained minister of the Galactic Church, I now pronounce you man and wife." He smiled at the Jedi Master. "You may now kiss your bride."  
  
Luke smiled and lifted her veil. ::I love you, Mara.::  
  
::I know.::  
  
As he leaned in to kiss her, he felt an odd tickling in the back of his mind.  
  
There was a sudden crack of a blaster bolt being fired. "LUKE!" Mara screamed, throwing him out of the way. He flipped up from the ground and instantly brought his lightsaber to bear. He was grateful he'd worn it. He glanced at Mara, and noticed with grim amusement that she's brought her own lightsaber. He wondered, irrelevantly, where she had hidden it in her dress.  
  
The crowd was screaming and panicking, and it was difficult for Luke to focus his attention on the direction of the attacker. Ah! There, to the left. He dodged the second blaster bolt with inhuman speed.  
  
He turned, and found Han beside him, blaster drawn. "Where is it coming from?" he hissed. "I'll send Security up. Leia!" he called over his shoulder. "You and Winter get the kids out! Now!" He turned back to Luke. "Where are they?"  
  
"Left balcony, second row," Mara snapped from behind him, deftly blocking three more bolts with her saber.  
  
"Thanks, Mara," Han said, clicking on his comlink and relaying the information.  
  
"Any read on who it is?" Mara asked Luke quietly as she dodged a few more shots. "It's only one person. I'm certain of that."  
  
He shook his head. "I have no idea. They're shielding their mind."  
  
Mara looked at him, startled. "Force-strong?"  
  
He nodded grimly. "Mara! Left!" he yelled, as three more shots were fired off in quick succession. But she was already rolling out of the way.  
  
::My reflexes are better than yours will ever be, farmboy,:: she quipped. ::I was dodging blaster bolts before you even knew what one was.::  
  
There was a sudden lull in the shots. Luke looked at Han curiously. "Did Security catch them?"  
  
Han shook his head frowning. "No, they would have reported-"  
  
There was a sudden snap-hiss of a lightsaber behind them. Luke and Mara turned to face their opponent, their own sabers at the ready.  
  
A small girl glared defiantly up at them, her startlingly blue eyes stark with naked hatred. Her hair was dark and smoky. Luke couldn't help but think she looked familiar, but he was certain that he's never seen this girl in his life. She brought up her lightsaber, its dark blue blade humming dangerously. "Master Skywalker," she stated in a frighteningly clear and reasonable voice, "you killed my mother. Therefore, I am going to kill you."  
  
With a scream far fiercer than anything a girl so young should have been able to produce, she lifted her lightsaber to strike. 


	2. Chapter Two

Oh yeah, forgot to do the disclaimer thing. Okay, here, then: none of these characters, places or concepts belong to me (I just wish they did). The belong to the gods who are George Lucas and Timothy Zahn. Any characters (like the mysterious girl) that you don't recognize probably belong to me. You may not use them, unless you get my express permission to do so. Thank you. Carry on.  
  
  
  
  
  
Luke parried the deadly strike with relative ease, though Mara could see that his muscles strained under the strength of the blow. She followed the girl tensely with her eyes as she carried out a series of attacks in rapid in succession. She was good, very good, Mara admitted to herself, but no where near as good as Luke. She knew the Jedi Master was in no danger, but her eyes never strayed from his attacker. She was ready to help at an instant's notice if he needed her.  
  
Mara studied the girl critically. She reminded her of someone, though she couldn't quite think of who it was. Suddenly, as the child took another powerful swipe at Luke, she saw a glimpse of her eyes. They were cold and hard as chips of ice, with a deep-burning hatred burning in them. With a sudden chill, Mara saw the girl for an instant with gold-red hair, and blazing green eyes. She shuddered. This child was herself at fifteen. This child had been raised to kill.  
  
Security had formed a loose ring around the dueling pair, blasters drawn, looking a trifle nervous and unsure of what to do. Mara glanced at them and hid a smile. New Republic security always seemed at a loss in matters of the Force.  
  
Luke spun and parried, spun and parried without effort. The girl had been taught inexpertly, and only knew two or three easily predictable attacks, but what she lacked in skill, she almost made up in raw power. He knew he could end this at any time, but he had no wish to hurt the girl. Not only did he want.no, need.to know who she was and why she had come (who was this mother, that he had killed?), but he knew he could teach her better than she had been taught. He felt more to her than the simple, driving need to kill that seemed so dominant in her mind.  
  
"Master Skywalker." the girl panted. "You.are much stronger.than we.expected."  
  
"We?" Luke asked curiously, striking aside a wild swing. She was getting tired. Her attacks were getting less and less coordinated. "Who else is with you?"  
  
The girl seemed to think that she had given too much away, and shut her lips in a thin line, renewing her attack. Luke flipped over an over-turned pew and came up behind her. Gasping for breath, she turned a bit sluggishly and took a wide blow at him. He struck it aside and sent her lightsaber spinning across the floor. She gave an angry hiss as he held the point of his lightsaber at her throat. "What is your name?" he asked quietly.  
  
"Kill me," she whispered fiercely. "I have failed. Kill me."  
  
"No," Luke answered. "I will do no such thing. You need training. I can give you that training."  
  
The girl spat in his face.  
  
"Why, you little-" Han growled, starting forward, but Mara held him back. "Let her go," she said in a low voice. "She can't hurt Luke."  
  
The girl twisted her head around carefully towards Mara and smiled faintly. "Are you so sure of that?"  
  
Mara looked at her levelly. "Yes." She focused her mind on a hapless security guards' sidearm that seemed to have suddenly developed a mind of its own without taking her eyes off of the girl. "So you can drop that blaster, I think," she suggested mildly. The child glared up at her with raw hatred. Mara smiled sweetly. As much as this girl reminded her of herself, she could tell already that she wasn't going to be very fond of her.  
  
"Please," Luke implored gently. "Let go of you anger. We aren't going to harm you." As if to prove this, he lowered his lightsaber and extinguished it, though Mara noticed he didn't put it away.  
  
"You killed my mother," the child hissed. "I will never let go of that."  
  
"What is your name?" Mara asked softly, coming up behind Luke.  
  
"Fayrelle," she said defiantly, as if someone was going to deny it.  
  
"And who was your mother?" Luke asked reasonably.  
  
For the first time, she looked uncertain. She cast down her eyes. "I.don't know."  
  
"Not even her name?"  
  
"No," the child whispered.  
  
"Well, then how the hell do you know that Luke killed her, for Force's sake?" Han burst out in exasperation.  
  
Fayrelle turned to glare at him. "My mentor told me. She found me when I was young, after he-" Here she jabbed forcefully at Luke with her finger. "- Murdered my mother."  
  
"Who's your 'mentor' then?" Han asked skeptically. Luke gave him a look of disapproval, but he ignored it.  
  
"Her name is Callista Chad," she snapped.  
  
Mara looked up at look, startled at the sudden turmoil she felt in his mind. He staggered back a step. ::Luke?:: she asked, worried. ::What's wrong?::  
  
Luke didn't appear to hear her. All of his attention was focused on Fayrelle. "What.." He licked his lips. "What did you say?"  
  
"Callista Chad," she repeated. She looked confused and uncertain, and, for the first time, afraid.  
  
"Callista." Luke echoed in a mindless whisper. "Callista."  
  
He turned on his heel, and walked quickly from the Chapel. He didn't look back. 


	3. Chapter Three

Luke's head was spinning. Callista. The pain of her loss still burned deep inside of him. Mara's presence had buried it, but had never really dispelled it, though with her in his life, ha had managed to forget.  
  
But now those carefully constructed mental shields that had concealed his memories of her for so long were crashing down around him. For the sake of his sanity, he had always assumed that she was dead, but in his heart he knew that she was not. He knew he would have known the instant she had disappeared from the world of the living.  
  
Regardless of whether she was living or dead, he had believed that she was lost to him forever. Mara filled the void she had left behind, filled it perhaps better than Callista ever had. But Callista was his first love, and he knew that as much as he might try to deny it, he was still very much in love with her.  
  
And now, by some strange twist of fate, her apprentice had appeared seemingly from out of nowhere to kill him. Coincidence? Perhaps. But Ben had never believed in coincidence, and Luke tended to agree with his teacher. There is no such thing as coincidence. There is the Force.  
  
Though even that seemed lost to him now; his mind was in such turmoil. He took a deep breath. Before he did anything else, he had to calm down. He reached out into the never-ending stream of life that was the Force, and eased himself into its flow, feeling himself become soothed. He opened his eyes.  
  
He realized that his feet had unconsciously carried him to one of the Botanical Gardens of the Imperial Palace, a place he often went when he felt troubled. He walked over to one of the marble benches and sat in the shade of one of the many Hapan kinito trees that lined the paths here. The thin gold leaves rustled softly in the wind, a sound that calmed him further. He finally felt clear-headed enough to think rationally.  
  
He knew that the first thing he needed to do was to find Mara and apologize, assuage her doubts, assure her that she was still his all and his everything. He knew how she felt about Callista. She had never forgiven the woman for hurting him, and probably never would.  
  
He sighed. Even after all these years, he still missed Callista. One of his best students had given her life so that Callista might live on.but when she found that she had lost her ability to use the Force, she had left him to find it again. After that, he had thought that he would never love again.but Mara came along, told him to stop being a melodramatic fool and gave him the love that Callista couldn't.  
  
Now it seemed that Callista had regained her powers. But Luke had a sinking feeling in his heart that they were not powers of the Light side of the Force, but of the Dark, the quick and easy way, and, perhaps, the only way for Callista.  
  
* * *  
  
"Well, who the hell is she?" Leia snapped over her shoulder at the NRI agent who was frantically trying to keep pace with the diminutive Chief of State. "You have two names to go on: Fayrelle and Callista Chad. I want all the intelligence information you can dig up on them as soon as humanely possible. This was a direct threat on Master Skywalker's life, and I want it neutralized immediately!"  
  
"Yes, ma'am! We'll get to work on it right away," the agent scurried away, looking relieved.  
  
Leia continued down the hall towards the high-security area of the prison. She absently waved her I.D. at the checkpoint, and stopped briefly to confer with the guards. "Have the ysalamiri come in yet?" she asked.  
  
"The shuttle's just bringing them over, ma'am," one of the men answered. "Had some trouble finding as many as you wanted, but we managed."  
  
Leia nodded. "Good." She glanced down the hall. "I'd like to speak with the prisoner."  
  
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but she's under heavy sedation until the ysalamiri get here, as per orders of Senator Fey'lya."  
  
Leia sighed. Of course Fey'lya would get himself mixed up into this. "My authority overrides his," she explained patiently. "I would like to see the prisoner."  
  
The guard looked uneasy. "Ma'am, she's considered extremely dangerous-"  
  
"I will assume responsibility for the danger," Leia said crisply. "Wake her up and let me in to see her."  
  
The guard hesitated, but pulled out his comlink. "Randit here. Take the sedation off of high-security prisoner D. She's got a visitor." There was a burst of static and a tinny reply. "I know, but the order came directly from the Chief of State herself.no, she's standing right here.yes, that's right.okay. Randit out." He clicked off the comlink and looked up at Leia. "They're removing the sedation now. She should be awake when we get there. If you'll follow me."  
  
"I would like to speak to the prisoner alone." Leia's voice was icy. She saw him stiffen and begin to turn, but she snapped, "That's an order, soldier."  
  
"Yes, ma'am," he said miserably. He pointed down the hall. "Third door on the right. I'll key the door to enter when you get there."  
  
Leia nodded. "Thank you." She walked down the hall and stopped at the door he had indicated. It snapped open with a hiss, revealing the girl's inert form lying on the hard prison bunk. As Leia entered, she began to stir. The door snapped shut again, and Leia took a seat in the single chair in the tiny cell. She looked down at the girl coldly. She wasn't exactly sure why she had come; after all, she didn't really believe that she could find anything out from this girl that the NRI couldn't. But she'd felt a burning desire to confront her brother's attacker since Mara had come home the night before, tense and upset and without Luke. She hadn't said a word to Leia, but she knew that this girl had done more than simply attack Luke. Luke himself hadn't returned home until very late, and Leia wasn't sure if he'd even spoken to Mara. There was something very wrong here. She knew what Han had told her: that the girl's name was Fayrelle, that she thought that Luke had murdered her mother, and that she was under the tutelage of someone named Callista Chad. Leia knew that the probability of this being the same Callista that Luke had known all those years ago was very low.but obviously, he didn't agree with her. Leia felt a momentary pang for her brother. He had just begun to settle down with Mara.and now this. Was he destined to always be alone?  
  
Suddenly, the girl's eyes snapped open. Leia was started at how blue they were. And how familiar. Where had she seen eyes like that? She felt as if she'd seen this girl somewhere before. She gave herself a mental shake. She'd never met this child in her life. She forced a pleasant smile. "Hello, Fayrelle."  
  
"Who.who are you?" the girl whispered, looking around. "Where am I?"  
  
"You're in the high-security area of the New Republic Detention Facility on Coruscant. I am Leia Organa Solo, Chief of State. I've come to ask you a few questions."  
  
Fayrelle sat up and backed herself up against the wall. She looked terrified. "What happened? Why am I here?" Her face clouded. She looked as if she were about to burst into tears. "Did I do something bad again?"  
  
Leia fought to keep her face impassive. What in the hells.? The girl had gone from a fierce predator to a lost child, reminding her heart-rendingly of her own children at a younger age. Sternly, she told herself to stop being ridiculous. This girl had tried to kill her brother. "Yes," she answered carefully. "You did. Do you remember what happened yesterday?"  
  
The girl shook her head slowly. "No." she whispered.  
  
"Well, then, I'll tell you," Leia said, struggling to keep the bite from her voice. "You broke into a wedding celebration in the Imperial Chapel, and attempted to kill Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. Three civilians were injured in the melee, though none critically, and 21,000 credits worth of damage was inflicted on the Chapel itself. Ring any bells?"  
  
The girl gaped at her. "I.I did that? Oh, no." Her brimming eyes finally overflowed and she began to cry in huge hiccupping sobs. "Calli, Calli, why'd you make me do that?" she wailed.  
  
Leia watched this with interest. Either this child was a remarkably good actress, or she was being controlled by an outside source. She bit her lip. There was one way to tell, and she really wasn't as good at that kind of thing as Luke was... She reached tentatively into the girl's mind. And was thrown back, gasping, at the twisted, whirling vortex that gyrated there. She stared at the girl. She hadn't done that to herself, she knew. Someone had deliberately torn huge chunks of memory and personality from this child's mind, and replaced odd pieces of other things, creating a huge, twisted mess of thoughts and feelings that were barely her own. After a moments hesitation, Leia reached out gently with the Force and softly caressed the girl's mind, calming and soothing her like she would her own children. That was all this girl was, she told herself stubbornly. An abused, misguided child.  
  
Slowly, Fayrelle's sobs ceased and she looked up at Leia with bright blue eyes. "You're much nicer than Calli," she said, sniffing. Suddenly she clapped her hand over her mouth and looked around fearfully. "Oh, I didn't say it, I didn't say it, Calli, I didn't say it!"  
  
"Shhh." Leia whispered, reaching out and smoothing back the girl's hair. "Don't worry. Calli isn't here."  
  
Fayrelle shook her head wildly. "Yes, she is! Calli is everywhere! She sees everything I do, no matter where I am, and if I'm not good, she.she." The girl burst into tears again.  
  
At that, Leia abandoned all thought of forcing information out of her like she was a criminal, and instead put all of her power into comforting her like the child she was. She knelt by Fayrelle's bed and gently held her until she had cried herself out. She reached into a pocket of her jumpsuit and took out one of the self-cleaning handkerchiefs that Jacen had gotten her for her birthday last year. She handed it to Fayrelle, who took it with a whispered, "Thank you." She blew her nose and sheepishly handed the cloth back to Leia, who put it in her pocket and smiled reassuringly at the child. "How old are you, Fayrelle?" she asked curiously.  
  
"Ten," she sniffed. "I think, anyway. Calli found me when I was little, so she doesn't know."  
  
"I know you're frightened, Fayrelle," Leia said gently, "but I have to know if I'm going to help you: who is Calli? Is she the same person as Callista Chad?"  
  
Fayrelle nodded solemnly.  
  
"But who is she, Fayrelle?"  
  
She hesitated, then looked up at Leia with wide blue eyes. "Calli is the most powerful woman in the universe, and she's going to take over the galaxy." 


	4. Chapter Four

She focused all of her attention on the hovering remote, her lightsaber poised to block, concentrating all of her senses on discovering what it would do next, where, it would go, what it would strike..  
  
An image came to her mind, unbidden, of Luke and an unfamiliar woman embracing..  
  
Mara's concentration shattered, and the remote chose that moment to spin in and shock her in the thigh. She swore. With an angry snarl, she swatted the remote out of the air with the pommel of her lightsaber, and it spun across the room to crash into the wall. She deactivated her saber, and threw it over to join it.  
  
She allowed herself to collapse to her knees on the foam mat of the practice room. She hugged herself tightly, despair welling through her, but she did not allow herself to cry. Get a hold of yourself, Jade, she ordered sternly. You've been here before. You've lived through it.  
  
But this is different, her heart cried. This is more..  
  
She turned away from that part of herself. Since she and Luke had.. She shook her head. Since she had met Luke, she had slowly shaken off the part of herself that was cold and callous, discarding it like a reptile discards its outgrown skins. Now, since yesterday's events, she had found herself slowly creeping back into that part of herself. It protects me, she told herself fiercely. It keeps me from feeling the pain..  
  
It also keeps me from feeling the Force.  
  
She took a deep breath. This was ridiculous. She had to get a hold of herself. She had received a terrible shock yesterday, but she had to remind herself that it had doubtlessly been ten times worse for Luke. She had to talk to him.  
  
You tried to last night, a small voice inside of her piped up, but he wouldn't even look at you.  
  
"Shut up," she told herself. "Shut up and find Luke. He needs you." Her eyes misted briefly with tears, but she dashed them away impatiently. She reached out gingerly with the Force and felt Luke's presence, a burning brand in her mind. She brushed against him gently. ::Luke?::  
  
Abruptly, all sense of him was cut off.  
  
She suddenly felt very cold and alone. Her first instinct was to curl up in a ball and dissolve into tears, but she shook her head and climbed to her feet determinedly. "All right, farmboy," she muttered, retrieving her lightsaber from the floor and clipping it to her belt, "if that's the way you want to play it.."  
  
* * *  
  
Fayrelle awoke to the dim light of her cell. She had no windows, and they hadn't given her a chrono, so she couldn't tell what time of day it was. She sat up, rubbing her eyes. She was very tired; she wondered what had woken her.  
  
::Fayrelle.::  
  
She gave a terrified squeak and tried to burrow back under the thin prison blanket, thought she knew it was futile. She had just regained herself, she couldn't loose herself again so quickly, not again..  
  
::Fayrelle, why are you trying to hide from me?::  
  
She would resist. She had to resist. She had to remain herself, if only for a little while longer. She had promised to help Leia Organa Solo.. She had promised..  
  
::Fayrelle.. My child, my darling, my love.. Whatever is the matter? Why are you hiding from me?::  
  
"You don't love me," Fayrelle whispered fiercely. "You never have."  
  
::Fayrelle! Don't be cruel. You know that you are everything to me.. You are the only thing that matters to me anymore.::  
  
"No, no, I'm not! Your revenge is the only thing that matters to you. You want to kill Master Skywalker, not me! You-" The presence in her mind grew stronger, fueled by its rage. It choked off her words and left her gasping for air.  
  
::NEVER,:: spat the bodiless voice, ::never mention that name in my presence. That man does not exist. Your task was to see that that statement was made true. You have failed, Fayrelle. I put my trust in you, and you have failed.::  
  
Fayrelle's eyes grew wide with fear as she stared ahead at something that none but her could see. "No! No, Calli, don't! Calli, I'm sorry, Calli, don't! CALLI, DON'T!" Her scream lost all distinguishable syllables, and she collapsed onto her bed, eyes wide and staring. Her body gave a single, convulsive shiver, then was still.  
  
* * *  
  
Luke sat hunched over his warm glass of Corellian ale. He had been moving from bar to bar all day, he wasn't sure why. His mind seemed lost in some kind of white haze. The other patrons of his current haunt, The Tipsy Rancor, a seedy joint in the upper low levels of the Imperial Center, avoided him, instinctively sensing a man in desperate straits. His usually clear blue eyes were dull, with dark circles, and his blonde hair was mussed and untidy. His clothes looked like they had been slept in. A few customers glanced at him, and did a double take; didn't that man in the corner there look a bit like the famed Jedi Master Luke Skywalker? No.. With a second glance, they decided that no hero of the New Republic would allow himself to be seen in such a state.  
  
One customer, however, did not ignore him.  
  
With an energetic flash of red hair, Mara Jade stalked up to the Jedi Master, and snapped just loud enough for the entire bar to hear, "Skywalker, what the hell do you think you're doing?"  
  
He looked up, startled, his dead eyes showing their first flash of life in the last twenty-four hours. "Mara..?"  
  
"No," Mara snorted, "it's Han. Of course it's Mara, you half-wit Jedi!" Her eyes softened and her voice lowered. "Who else would tramp through half of the bars on Coruscant looking for you?"  
  
His eyes cleared completely, and he looked around, a little dazed. The bar was almost completely silent, and every eye, sensorary horn and sight tentacle was trained on them. "Mara.." He looked down at his hands. "Mara, I'm sorry.." He looked up at her, his eyes full of emotion that he could not express. "Thank you." She understood what he had not said, and she nodded.  
  
She knelt in front of him. "Come on, Luke," she said gently. "Let's go home."  
  
He nodded, and struggled to his feet. He stumbled and fell against Mara, who supported him. "Farmboy," she said with some amusement, "you are smashed."  
  
"No, I'm not," he protested, and took a few steps, only to nearly fall into a table of startled Bothans.  
  
"Yes, you are," Mara corrected, steering him clear. She threw a handful of credits at the bar attendant. "Keep the change," she called over her shoulder.  
  
When they reached the small apartment they were sharing, she keyed the door pad to open, and dragged him inside. She helped him into bed, pulled his boots off, then collapsed next to him. "Skywalker," she panted, "you are far too heavy."  
  
"Getting out of shape, are we, Mara?" Luke murmured, his eyes half-closed.  
  
Mara laughed. "You wish, farmboy!" She rolled half on top of him and studied his face. "Luke?" she asked. She suddenly felt inexplicably afraid.  
  
"Mmm?"  
  
She bit her lip. She didn't want to say it, but she had to know. "Do.. Do you-" Her voice caught. She felt an errant tear trickle down her face.  
  
Luke propped himself up on one elbow, and tenderly wiped it away with his free hand. "Mara," he asked softly, cupping her face in his hand, "what's the matter?"  
  
::Luke, do you still love me?:: She couldn't look at him. She was prepared for rejection, but she couldn't look him in the eye when he said no..  
  
His eyes filled with tears. ::Oh, Mara..:: He sat up and reached forward, enfolding her in a tight embrace. ::Never ask that, Mara. Never.:: He turned her face up, so her eyes met his. ::I will love you forever. I promise.:: Their lips met.  
  
Later, lying together with the sheet thrown carelessly over their intertwined bodies, Luke spoke quietly, "I have to go find her, Mara."  
  
"I know," Mara answered, her head pillowed on his chest. "And you know I'm going with you."  
  
Luke smiled and kissed her red-gold hair. "I know, Mara. I know." 


	5. Chapter Five

The doorchime on her apartments rang at an obscenely early hour the next morning. Leia lay in her bed, half-asleep, wondering if she ought to go see who it was or simply let 3PO handle it. She could hear his fussy voice distantly through her bedroom door, and rolled over, content to let him annoy her visitor away.

"I'm very sorry, but Mistress Leia is still asleep…oh, Master Luke! Do come in, sir. Do you require any refreshment…?"

Leia scrambled out of bed and rummaged in her closet for her robe. While she regretted not being able to take advantage of the rare opportunity to sleep in, she was relieved that her brother had finally come to see her. She ran a brush quickly through her long hair before padding softly out to the living area.

Luke grinned sheepishly when he saw her. "Did I wake you up?"

She smiled. "Yes, but it's fine." She sat next to him and rested her hand on his knee. "Are you okay?" she asked with concern.

He took a deep breath. "I think so. Mara…straightened me out."

Leia laughed in spite of herself. "I bet she did." She was rewarded with a barely surpressed smile from her brother. "Is Mara all right?"

Luke nodded. "I know I shouldn't have just left…but…"

"I think she understands, Luke. I do. It was a shock."

He sighed. "Yeah, you can say that again."

"What are you going to do now?" she asked gently.

His face hardened with determination. "I'm going to find her."

Leia nodded. "I thought you would. Is Mara going with you?"

He snorted. "Do you really think she'd let me go alone?"

His sister grinned. "No. Do you think I would?"

He grinned back. "No." He looked away and said quietly. "Will you take me to see the girl?"

"Fayrelle? Of course." She bit her lip. "Although, there's some things you should know about her…"

''''''''''''''

The ysalamiri had been delivered and arranged around Fayrelle's cell the day before, and Leia was amazed at the difference it made. The child was much more at ease, and seemed more alert. She was eating breakfast when Leia and Luke entered the cell, and she greeted them shyly. Luke barely recognized the girl as his attacker. She seemed an entirely different person. Leia had explained that the ysalamiri appeared to cancel out whatever influence that Callista had over Fayrelle's mind, and although he would be unable to probe her mind within the Force-negating bubble of the ysalamiri, she thought that it would be safer to question her initially without Callista's control. Luke had agreed, but he still felt unnerved by the effect produced by the ysalamiri. Being unable to feel the Force was like being blind, deaf and dumb.

"Hello, Miss Leia," Fayrelle said shyly. She wiped some sauce off of her chin quickly with her napkin, and held out one of her fruit biscuits. "Do you want one?"

Leia laughed, and even Luke had to smile as this childishly sweet gesture. "No, thank you, Fayrelle," she answered. "I've already eaten. I brought someone to meet you." She gestured to Luke. "This is Jedi Master Luke Skywalker."

Fayrelle's eyes went wide, and she scrambled against the wall, nearly upsetting her meal. She whimpered in fear.

Leia was startled at this reaction. "What's wrong, Fayrelle? He isn't going to hurt you. I promise." She stepped forward to comfort her, but she only pushed herself away. She was shaking violently. Leia looked back at Luke, helplessly.

He came forward and knelt by Fayrelle's bunk. "Fayrelle," he said quietly. "I'm not going to harm you in any way. What you did two days ago was not your fault. I understand that, and I'm not going to blame you for something that you were forced to do against your will. Okay?"

Fayrelle nodded. She licked her lips and asked in a voice barely above a whisper, "Did…did you really kill my mother?"

Luke shook his head. "If I did, I did it unknowingly and unwillingly. If you mother was part of one of the battles I've participated in to make the galaxy a safer place, then it's possible she was hurt."

The child seemed to consider this. "Calli never told me how she died. She just said you did it."

"It's possible she lied to you," Leia explained.

"Why would she do that? She…loves me," Fayrelle insisted, but her voice was uncertain.

"Will you tell me about her?" Luke asked. His voice sounded strained. Leia looked at him sharply, and was disturbed by the expression of longing on his face.

"Calli is the most powerful woman in the universe, and she's going to take over the galaxy," Fayrelle said imeadiately.

"Yes, you've told me that," Leia said gently. "What else can you tell us? Where does she live? What does she do? What is she like?"

The child seemed unsure of where to begin, then said, "Calli is very pretty. She's very nice to me, usually. She hugs me a lot." Her face clouded. "But sometimes she gets very angry for no reason. She makes things fly around our house. Sometimes they hit me. And if I ever talk about him -" she gestured to Luke – "she hits my face. I'm not allowed to say his name. Sometimes she talks about him, but I don't like when she does, because she always gets very angry and throws things around with the Force. I don't think she can help it."

Leia could see that this pained her brother deeply. She asked hurriedly, "Where is your house?"

"Near a forest," she answered promptly. "There's a small town with a little spaceport a few klicks away, and that's where we get most of our things."

"Do you know what planet it's on?"

Fayrelle shook her head. "I've never been away from it before this. Calli didn't tell me where we were going when we left, and she put me to sleep before we took off."

Luke took a sharp intake of breath. "You mean she came with you? She's here?"

She bit her lip. "I think so. It's hard for me to say. I…don't really remember much after I went to sleep."

"Do you remember what the ship looked like?" Leia asked.

"It's a small skiff called _The Tsaelke,"_ she answered.

Luke stood up abruptly and left the cell without a word.

Fayrelle looked frightened. "Did I say something wrong? Is he angry with me?"

"No," Leia assured her. "He's not angry." She looked after him and bit her lip. "He's…sad. He's very sad."


End file.
